This disclosure relates to methods of hair loss treatment. More specifically, it relates to compositions and methods for inhibiting hair loss and/or stimulating hair growth.
Hair loss, also known as alopecia, affects both males and females, and may be caused by genetic factors, auto-immune disorders, chemotherapy, aging, local or systemic disease, etc. None of the conditions causing alopecia are very well understood, however such conditions are generally distressing to the individual experiencing them, in part due to the human physical appearance often being regarded as an essential factor in social communication and interactions. Consequently, some individuals experiencing alopecia can perceive hair loss as a social handicap.
Alopecia may occur in various parts of the human body, such as scalp, face, limbs, and trunk, and may be generally grouped in the following categories: male or female pattern baldness (e.g., androgenic alopecia), toxic alopecia (e.g., hair loss due to chemotherapy), alopecia aerata (i.e., hair loss occurs in demarcated areas), and scarring alopecia (e.g., hair loss due to inflammation and tissue destruction). Androgenic alopecia is one of the most common causes of hair loss and it occurs due to a deficiency in androgenic metabolism, e.g., accumulation of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in hair follicles owed to a defective regulation in an enzyme responsible for DHT synthesis, 5α-reductase. Some current hair loss treatments involve the use of 5α-reductase inhibitors for modulating the levels of DHT in the hair follicles. However, such 5α-reductase inhibitors result only in moderate regrowth of hair in less than half of the users.
Some hair loss treatment formulations involve the use of an alcohol-based delivery vehicle, which may pose various problems. Before the hair loss treatment becomes effective, the alcohol present in the hair treatment formulation may cause the hair of the individual using it to become brittle, break and/or fall out. Alcohol based delivery vehicles may also lead to the irritation of the scalp, and as a result some people may discontinue the use before seeing the potential beneficial effects from the hair loss treatment.
As such, there exists a need for improved hair loss treatment compositions and methods of using same.